Optimizing Kitchen Storage

Written by Kim @ Good and Easy Eats, Contributing Writer

*note from Rachel: This is Kim’s last post here, she has a busy family and life and I’d ask that you keep her in your prayers as she moves on to all God has for her!

I love bins, bottles and jars! And I’ve recently been taking advantage of the use of all three in making my kitchen storage areas more efficient.

It all began with the freezer a couple of weeks ago. Now, keep in mind, this is the same fridge I’ve owned for over eight years and this idea hadn’t occurred to me until now. We don’t use an ice maker, but I’ve kept the bin that would catch the ice in the freezer and kept bags of bulk items (seeds, flours, etc.) in it.

Then the thought came to me- why don’t I add a couple of more bins to the freezer. I “stole” some from our toy area and was blown away by how it improved my freezer storage. All the frozen veggies stood up nicely in one bin. Frozen berries and bananas filled another bin. On and on until everything was sorted and easily accessible in their own bins. Then I took a look at the door shelves and thought that could use some sprucing up too. I poured seeds, flours and grains into quart jars and lined them up neatly on the shelf. Yay!– space-efficient, tidy and handy!

My pantry (metal shelving from a membership warehouse store) had started bothering me too. Assorted bags, of various sizes and shapes, cluttered the shelves. I had roughly sorted things into categories of foods (snacks, gluten-free flours, nuts and dried fruits, etc.) and had used some bins to do so  but I realized most of these items were things I regularly kept on hand and could warrant their own storage vessel. I started pouring poppy seeds into a cute little jar, cashews into a quart-size canning jar and raisins into a pint jar. I debated about adding labels, but realized that the jars on their own were attractive and self-explanatory. Hurray!– another storage problem solved.

I’ve found that storing items in this way has helped me to keep on top of inventory as well. When a jar is getting low, I know to add that item to my shopping list. When they were in assorted bags I wasn’t really aware of where things were at.

It seems with each transition to a new year I’m always keen to find new ways to organize in our home. The kitchen is a common target with these efforts. Different years I’ve focused on different areas.

Maybe you’ll find one or two you’d like to tackle this year!

   

Bulk Items and Baking Tools

      

General Storage, Cutting boards and Cooking utensils

I’d love to hear some of your kitchen organization tips. I’m always looking for new inspiration!